Toilet plungers and other cleaning devices have long been used to unblock and clean toilet drains. It is preferable to store such devices out of sight, since they are generally unsightly and unsanitary, but such devices are often difficult to store because of the limited amount of space in most bathrooms. Furthermore, the means of storage should securely support the cleaning devices and allow for drainage, yet allow them to be readily available when needed to clean or remove blockages in the drains.
Earlier efforts have attempted to respond to the storage and convenience-of-use problems, providing toilet plunger covers and/or combination toilet plunger covers and toilet plungers. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,114,006 to Wilk, and U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,335,374 and 5,305,880 to Wilk et al., the toilet plunger housing is part of the toilet plunger. The Wilk ('006) combination toilet plunger and housing device has a housing with a slotted base which rests directly on the floor, wherein the plunger cup rests upon the slots when the plunger is in storage, and the same slots are used for grasping of the housing when the plunger is extended for use. Other embodiments of Wilk ('006) disclose the plunger cup resting on a removable base plate when the plunger is in a storage position. The '374 and '880 patents further expand upon this basic concept.
More recently, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,958,150 by Borger et al. disclosed a separate storage device which can be opened and closed without being manipulated directly by the user. The storage device also serves to partially conceal the plunger when closed and allows the plunger to drain while sitting in the device. Both the Borger and Wilk devices are stand-alone assemblies for housing the plunger apart from the toilet.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,701,702 by Deiderich, on the other hand, provides an accessory for use within a toilet flush tank which supplies deodorant or disinfectant and may also support a toilet brush. The accessory is preferably a metal wire apparatus which is supported by the overflow pipe. Thus use of toilet plungers is not disclosed in the '702 patent.
Thus, while there has been substantial effort in the design of bathroom accessory storage devices for toilet plungers and other cleaning devices, the art has not adequately responded to date with the introduction of a means for storing a toilet plunger or other cleaning device which securely stores the toilet plunger or other cleaning device in a concealed fashion that allows for drainage and ready access, while not occupying additional scarce bathroom space or presenting an unattractive visage. The present invention substantially fulfills this need.